Mourinho faces injury crisis

Jose Mourinho admits Chelsea are struggling to cope with a mid-season injury crisis after their title bid was dented by a 2-2 home draw with Reading.

The reigning Premiership champions are now four points behind leaders Manchester United and have produced some uncharacteristically lax performances in recent weeks, conceding six goals in their last three matches.

Chelsea might revel in their reputation as one of the game's richest clubs but Mourinho has attributed their recent wobbles to his squad's lack of adequate cover for injured stars John Terry, Petr Cech, Joe Cole and Arjen Robben. All are vital players, but it is England captain Terry whose absence has been most keenly felt.

Terry is currently out with a back problem and Mourinho is waiting anxiously for confirmation of whether the defender requires surgery. He deployed Michael Essien as a make-shift centre-half against Reading, but the Portuguese is uncomfortably aware of a lack of defensive depth in his squad, which he attributes to the pre-season departures of the centre-halves William Gallas and Robert Huth. "To lose Petr and John at the same time is a very difficult problem to solve, especially in a squad without more central defenders," he said. "We lost Gallas and Huth in the summer. We don't have enough cover so at this moment we are having problems.

"I've no idea when John will be back. I read something in the press saying he'd be back soon but they obviously know more than me, because I have no idea. Nobody has said whether he will go for surgery or need some other type of treatment. I don't know how long he will be out for - three days, three weeks or three months. The medical department will have to make a decision quickly."